Friday, April 13, 2018

By now, the dispatchers and officers — even the chief of police — know him simply as Floyd. By his own tally, he has found and helped return about 75 vehicles so far this year. The authorities in Anchorage say they have not tracked the number of people, like Floyd, who have taken on roles as self-appointed spotters, watchers, trackers or all-around crime fighters, but that they are numerous. Frustration has fueled their energy, and social media has given them tools to coordinate efforts.

Alaska often zigs while the rest of the nation zags; its economy boomed through the nation’s recession a decade ago. Now property crimes have spiked in the Anchorage area, where a majority of Alaskans live, even as such offenses have been declining for the nation as a whole, federal figures show.